USA Network Launching Social Platform to Accompany Reality Show

The platform is meant to mirror the experience of the new show, The Moment, and to provide a path to career and/or goal fulfillment.

For those not lucky enough to land their dream jobs the first time around, USA Network has created a reality show, The Moment.

And for those not lucky enough to appear on the show, USA has created an accompanying online experience, My Moment. According to USA, the platform will provide advice and resources that will enable participants to pursue their dream careers.

The Moment, which premiered yesterday, is hosted by former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner and follows the stories of nine individuals who are given a second chance at their dream jobs. That includes an Alabama mom who trains with a professional photographer to help fulfill her goal of becoming a Sports Illustrated photographer.

Meant to mirror the experience of the show, USA says My Moment will give viewers the opportunity to embark on their so-called paths of discovery. Like the show, it goes live Thursday.

The site lists four steps to participate: Declare, Look In, Step Out and Achieve. Each step lists further tasks and suggests resources to aid in completion, including: Skillshare, which calls itself a global learning platform and marketplace for classes; professional network LinkedIn; crowdfunding platform Indiegogo; and Everest, an iPhone app that says it "helps you live your dreams and achieve personal goals."

Participants will also be able to share their journeys with the My Moment community and on social networks with the hashtag #MyMoment. Warner will serve as a career coach and will recognize the participants' work with Kurt Alerts, or short videos of encouragement. Support badges are also available. A USA rep says they can be awarded by anyone in the community to support a Hopeful, or new participant.

Since USA typically launches scripted shows, Jessica Sutherland, vice president of content development at USA, says the network wanted to capitalize upon the inspirational and motivational themes of this non-competitive reality show.

"We wanted to create a step-by-step process for declaring your goal...and give users a portal from which to declare these dreams and pull in other social networks and friends to create a community so they have a way to kind of get this group of people to encourage each other and see other stories and be inspired by the steps they have taken," Sutherland says.

In addition to encouraging fans to use #MyMoment and aggregating mentions on the website, Sutherland says USA is also creating a series of inspirational messages from mentors and so-called Inspirers on the site that will be pinnable to Pinterest.

From March 27 to April 2, @TheMoment_USA tweeted Warner's own inspirational tale with #KurtsStory. The network also posted a comparable photo gallery on Facebook.

As of Wednesday, @TheMoment_USA has 1,200 followers and 38,000 Facebook fans.

The Moment will include 8 episodes that will air through May 30. The site will remain live afterward.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

In addition to ClickZ and Search Engine Watch, Lisa's work has appeared in The Huffington Post, The Luxury Spot, LearnVest, MarthaStewart.com, GoodHousekeeping.com, amNewYork, and The Wall Street Journal. She's a graduate of Columbia's School of Journalism.

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